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Browsing by master's degree program "Master´s Programme in Agricultural, Environmental and Rescource Economics)"

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  • Puntila, Hanna (2023)
    Vuoden 1945 maanhankintalailla perustettiin Suomeen noin 90 000 uutta tilaa tai tonttia, asuttamiseen käytettiin noin 2,5 miljoonaa hehtaaria maata. Sen tarkoituksena oli saada työtä ja asuntoja siirtoväelle sekä rintamamiehille. Maanhankintalain nojalla maatalous pientilavaltaistui ja sitä siirtyi heikkotuottoisimmille alueille, kuten Pohjois- ja Itä-Suomeen. Siirtoväestä valtaosa asutettiin Etelä-Suomeen, koska se vastasi siirtoväen entisen kotiseudun olosuhteita. Tutkielmassa verrataan Hämeen läänin maatalouden tunnusluvuissa vuosina 1945–1950 tapahtuneita muutoksia Uudenmaan, Vaasan, Mikkelin sekä Turun ja Porin lääneihin. Maisterintutkielman tavoitteena oli selvittää vuoden 1945 maanhankintalain vaikutuksia tuon ajan Hämeen läänin maatalouteen ja alueen maanluovuttajiin, näiden viljelyn jatkuvuuteen ja tilojen tuottavuuteen. Tutkielmassa tarkastellaan kirjallisuuden ja asiantuntijan haastattelun tuella Hämeen läänissä vuosien 1941 ja 1950 välillä maatalouden tunnusluvuissa tapahtuneita muutoksia, kuten teknologian määrää, tuotannon ja tilojen rakennetta. Tutkielmassa on tarkastelussa maanluovuttajia silloisen Hämeen läänin alueelta. Henkilökohtaisten haastattelujen ja arkistopohjaisen tiedon perusteella on pyritty selvittämään, miten maanluovutukset vaikuttivat viljelmien toimintaan ja tulevaisuuteen. Verrokkilääneistä viljelmien keskikoko laski eniten Hämeen läänissä maanhankintalain vaikutuksesta. Verrokkilääneistä Hämeen lääniin perustettiin eniten maanhankintalain mukaisia tiloja, josta on seurannut tilojen keskikoon huomattava lasku. Teknologinen kehitys on seurannut paljolti läänin viljelmien keskikokoa. Lypsykoneita on ollut sitä enemmän yhtä lehmää kohden, mitä korkeampi on läänin tilojen keskikoko. Vuoden 1941 perusteella traktoreidenkin yleisyys on perustunut läänin viljelmien keskikokoon. Sato- ja tuotostasot ovat nousseet tilakoon noustessa. Suuremmat tilat ovat pystyneet hyödyntämään paremmin tuotantopanoksia. Hämeessä myös navetoiden yksikkökoot laskivat ja maidontuotantoa siirtyi asutustiloille. Maanhankintalailla sovellettu ”kielipykälä” johti osittain siihen, että Hämeeseen muodostui asutustoimintaa enemmän kuin esimerkiksi Uudenmaan sekä Turun ja Porin lääniin. Kielipykälä rajoitti suomenkielisen väestön asuttamista ruotsinkielisille alueille. Maanhankintalain toimeenpanoon lunastettiin yksityisomisteista maata progressiivisen asteikon mukaan. Mitä suurempi tila oli, sitä enemmän sen piti asutuskäyttöön maata luovuttaa. Hämeen läänin maanluovuttajat joutuivat eriarvoiseen asemaan kielipykälän vuoksi. Monilla ruotsinkielisillä alueilla suuret tilat jäivät luovutusten ulkopuolelle, mutta Hämeen läänissä ei ruotsinkielisiä alueita ollut. Maanluovutuksista seurasi usein suoraan taloudellisia menetyksiä, kuten tuotannon ja tuottavuuden alentumista. Joissain tapauksissa tuotannon loppumista. Lisäksi osalle maanluovuttajista lunastetut alueet korvattiin valtion velkasitoumuksilla, joiden arvon inflaatio söi 10-vuodessa vain murto-osaan niiden todellisesta arvosta. Tämä oli lisäämään keskustelua valtion ”agraariryöstöstä”. Velkasitoumuksien arvon alenemisen riskit ovat maanhankintalakia valmistellessa tiedetty, koska aihe on ollut tuolloin poliittisessa keskustelussa. Suurempien maanluovuttajien kohdalla vaikutukset voivat olla edelleen nähtävissä, jos peltoala ei ole tänäkään päivänä noussut maanhankintalakia edeltävälle tasolle. Tällaisten tilojen kohdalla maanluovutukset johtivat elämäntavan muutokseen ja suuriin taloudellisiin menetyksiin. Valtaosa yksityisistä luovuttajista kuului 25–50 peltohehtaarin kokoluokkaan. Maanluovutusten aiheuttamat rakenteelliset vaikutukset ovat nähtävillä tämän kokoluokan tilojen kautta, vaikka yksittäisiä tapauksia tarkastellessa ovat vaikutukset olleet suurimmat yli 50 peltohehtaarin viljelmillä. Maanhankintalaki on vaikuttanut toimeenpanevasti moneen muutokseen, kuten 1950-luvulla ilmenneeseen maataloustuotteiden ylituotantoon, joka johti tuotannon tarkempaan sääntelyyn. Lain toimeenpanon myötä myös maataloutta siirtyi aiempaa enemmän Pohjois- ja Itä-Suomeen. Tilojen keskikoko laski ja maataloudesta tuli osa aluepolitiikkaa. Rakenteellisesti vaikutukset ovat edelleen nähtävillä, mutta yksittäisten tilojen kohdalla on tunnistettavuus usein hautautunut lukuisten maanhankintalain jälkeen tulleiden lakien, kiintiöiden, mietintöjen ja sopimusten taakse.
  • Kaariaho, Tuomas (2023)
    Following the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear accident in 2011, Germany swiftly decommissioned eight of its seventeen nuclear reactors, ultimately committing to a complete nuclear phase-out. Consequently, a substantial portion of nuclear power production was replaced by fossil fuels. Given the established link between fossil fuel use in electricity generation and localized air pollution, this transition likely adversely affected local air quality and associated respiratory health effects. This thesis examines the unintended health consequences of Germany's nuclear phase-out, focusing on premature mortality from non-communicable respiratory diseases, quantified through Potential Years of Life Lost. This thesis uses the synthetic control method to investigate the health outcomes of nuclear phase-outs, adding to the limited existing literature in this domain. Employing synthetic control techniques and utilizing mortality data from the World Health Organization, I am able to construct a counterfactual scenario representing a Germany that did not phase out nuclear energy. This allows me to assess the trajectories of potential years of life lost due to non-communicable respiratory diseases following the nuclear plant closures. I find an annual increase of 14 potential years of life lost per 100,000 residents after these closures, predominantly affecting individuals aged 50 to 64. The resulting economic costs due to this increased mortality range between five billion to 19 billion euros, depending on the chosen value of life year. Considering the exceedingly low probability of Fukushima scale nuclear accident, these figures surpass the expected damages of a such accident. In sum, this thesis underscores the importance of considering potential unintended consequences of policy changes. The German nuclear phase-out led to amplified mortality and economic expenditures. Despite its substantial local impact, local air pollution remains less recognized than greenhouse gas emissions. Policymakers should extend their considerations in the energy sector to encompass local air pollution alongside greenhouse gas emissions.
  • Jaana, Haavisto (2023)
    Policy makers must make decisions regarding budget allocation between policies and research. Only actions improve the state of the system, but knowledge increases the probability of effective action. The outcome of environmental policies is usually uncertain, and the question remains: should we invest more in research or use resources for additional policies? Under uncertain decision making, it is clear, that doing and knowing go hand in hand. Still, there is a lack of scientific analyses about the relationship between these features. This paper analyses how uncertainty in policy implementation outcome (i.e., Value- of- control, VoC) effects the need for additional knowledge, which is measured using value- of- information (VoI) analysis. Additionally, the paper analyses how the obtained results can help in the allocation of resources between policy and research. To answer these questions, I use a published Bayesian decision model by Helle et al. (2015) as a source for further analysis. It is an influence diagram model, consisting of two decision variables, 40 random variables and 13 utility variables which are described in euros, allowing the monetary summarisation of utility. I introduce levels of implementation uncertainty to the other decision by placing an additional random variable to influence the successor variables of the decision. I define the levels of uncertainty using two co-variation methods, first one being the proportional co-variation method, and the second one the order- preserving uniform method. By this way, I analyse and compare the effect of distinct levels of decreased controllability (VoC) to VoI analysis results. These two methods describe two alternative ways of modelling the uncertainty in implementation, which is always uncertain when we consider future actions that have yet to been implemented. I conduct the analysis separately for both co-variation approaches, and 10 alternative levels of implementation uncertainty, to enable systematic comparability between the chosen methods, and to learn alternative ways to consider the relationship of controllability and knowledge. First, I preform the VoI analysis only for the policy that is subjected to implementation uncertainty. Secondly, the analysis is done for both decision variables and the Single Policy Updating (SPU) algorithm of Hugin software is used for detecting optimal policies for different implementation uncertainty levels. In other words, I show how the various levels of controllability of the system impact the needs to carry out research. I argue, that this is a fundamental question for many environmental policy questions, such as climate change, eutrophication, loss of biodiversity and in my example, risks of oil spills. The results show a consistent, but interesting effect of decreased controllability to the VoI analysis results. Increase in implementation uncertainty raises the overall VoI and increases the number of variables presented with VoI, i.e., once the estimated uncertainty of controllability increases, the chance to achieve desired results increases only by knowing more. When only one decision variable is included, VoI increases to the point of no control, indicating that VoI is zero when controllability of the system is zero, indicating that there is no point of carrying out research, if the knowledge cannot be used to improve the effects of actions. When both decision variables are included in this case, VoI increases to a certain point and decreases after that. This study highlights the need for such analyses in decision problems, where uncertainty in policy implementation is often overlooked. This is the case with most deterministic, point estimate models. I argue, that this type of analysis would lead to more effective solving of environmental problems.
  • Raschen, Annika (2021)
    This thesis studies the economic benefits that the installation of nature-based solutions can have as a flood risk management tool. The effects of a changing climate often accumulate in urbanised areas and can translate into an increased likelihood and heightened damage potential of precipitation-induced flood events. One way to reduce the devastating flood impact is the use of nature-based solutions, which are management tools relying on natural processes and ecosystem services (EC, 2018). Green roofs are one example of nature-based solutions. To date, little research is available in the academic literature on the economic profitability and cost-efficiency of such alternative approaches (Palmer et al., 2015). The thesis aims to contribute to the scare literature on the topic by conducting a flood damage assessment for a case study site. It is devel-oped from a research contribution to the EU OPERANDUM project, which evaluates nature-based solutions as tool to alleviate hydro-meteorological risks as well as their cost-efficiency on a broader scale (OPERANDUM Project, 2018). The thesis conducts a flood dam-age assessment for green roofs hypothetically installed in Dublin, Ireland. It estimates the expected damage costs from flood scenarios with a recurrence period of 10, 100 and 1000 years. To this end it relies methodologically on a flood damage assessment, specifically the Joint Research Centre model developed by Huizinga, de Moel & Szewczyk (2017), as well as on value transfer. The assessment is re-stricted to the calculation of direct, tangible flood damages. To provide more robust results, the assessment also draws on the analytical insights from the cost-benefit analysis literature and incorporates aspects such as discounting and a partial sensitivity analysis. In terms of software, the majority of the research is carried out in QGIS and Excel. Comparing the flood impacts with and without the installation of nature-based solutions, it assesses the size of the avoided damage costs and finds a noticeable positive impact of green roofs. The green roofs cannot only reduce the size of the flooded areas by up to 19% as well as decrease the water depth in the still inundated parts, but also noteworthily curtails the height of the direct, tangible flood damage costs. The thesis cannot extract definite conclusions on the profitability of green roofs in the sense of providing a net present value, because it does not study costs nor other benefits of green roofs for reasons of scope. It does, however, show that the installation of green roofs can lower the flood damage costs in Dublin by up to 36%. As additional conclusion, this thesis calls for research into more nuanced flood damage assessment methods, since the selected model excluded many factors. A methodological refining could increase the precision of monetary damage estimates. Altogether, the thesis observes that green roofs can be a useful tool to reduce the devastating impact of urban floods. However, green roofs should be combined with other flood management tools, since they can be insufficient if applied on their own.
  • Matula, Alina (2023)
    Among financial institutions, there is a growing concern about risks in their portfolios related to biodiversity, and its closely related affiliate, climate change. Investors are demanding greater transparency and biodiversity management in order to make informed investment decisions in listed equity and to act as responsible shareholders. The aim of this thesis is to explore, from the Nordic pension investor point of view, how the risk related to biodiversity loss is assessed and managed in the financial markets. Following qualitative approach, primary data was collected with 14 semi-structured in-depth interviews of two target groups: pension investors in the Nordic countries and ESG specialists which refers to specialists in sustainable finance or biodiversity related sustainability fields. The results were analyzed using template analysis. The results show that taking biodiversity into consideration in investment processes is constantly evolving and Nordic pension investors are paying close attention to the topic. Among drivers to incorporate biodiversity into investment decision-making, risk management was the most important. ESG specialists' experience of institutional investors' means to influence biodiversity loss mitigation differed from pension investors' perspective. Nordic pension investors are not fully aware of the existing methods for analyzing the risks and impacts of biodiversity loss in their own investment portfolio. However, they are highly motivated to find reliable ways to manage portfolio risks. Integrating biodiversity risks and impacts into the investment process can be challenging due to a lack of investment tools and best practices. Investors are preparing for increasing statutory and voluntary regulation. Both ESG specialists and Nordic pension investors see that lack of comparable, transparent, reliable data is an essential barrier when it comes to listed-equity investments and biodiversity loss mitigation. The data available lacks financial materiality and the impacts of biodiversity loss on the real-world return expectations, and return-risk-profiles are unknown. To solve problems regarding the lack of data in general and especially transparent and comparable data, companies are expected to disclose material nature-related dependencies and impacts, and report associated metrics and targets.
  • Nyman, Oskari (2023)
    Biokaasu on uusiutuva energianlähde, jolla pystytään korvaamaan fossiilisten polttoaineiden käyttöä teollisuudessa sekä liikenteessä. Tämän vuoksi Euroopan unionin ja Suomen tavoitteena on lisätä biokaasun tuotannon määrää. Suomessa on muihin Euroopan maihin kuten Saksaan ja Tanskaan verrattuna vähän biokaasulaitoksia, mikä johtuu osittain heikosta kannattavuudesta. Tämä tutkielma on tapaustutkimus, jonka tavoitteena on selvittää neljän eri biokaasulaitosvaihtoehdon kannattavuus ja vaikutus tilan energiaomavaraisuuteen loimaalaisella sikatilalla. Tilalla on noin 200 emakkopaikan yhdistelmäsikala sekä noin 160 hehtaaria peltoa viljelyssään. Pienissä biokaasulaitosvaihtoehdoissa syötteinä käytetään 6000 tonnia lietettä, 1000 tonnia kuivalantaa sekä 50 tonnia nurmea. Suurissa laitosvaihtoehdoissa nurmen määrä nostetaan 500 tonniin. Tutkielman teoriaosuudessa käydään yleisesti läpi biokaasuntuotantoa, eli syötteitä, tuotteita ja biokaasuprosesseja sekä maatilakohtaisia biokaasulaitoksia koskevia lakisääteisiä vaatimuksia ja biokaasulaitosinvestoinnille haettavia tukia. Kannattavuuslaskelmat suoritetaan Luken biokaasulaskurilla, joka on suunniteltu alle 35 000 tonnia syötteitä käyttävien biokaasulaitosten kannattavuuksien arviointiin. Biokaasulaskurin lähtötiedot asetetaan sopiviksi tilalta saatujen tietojen mukaan. Tutkimuksen tuloksissa todettiin, että vain suuri biometaania tuottava biokaasulaitosvaihtoehto oli käytetyillä lähtöarvoilla kannattava. Herkkyysanalyyseissä todettiin, että kaikki laitosvaihtoehdot olivat kannattavia, jos käytettävien syötteiden laatu oli lähtöarvoja korkeampi. Lämmön ja sähkön yhteistuotanto (CHP) oli kannattavaa pienessä sekä suuressa laitoksessa, jos ostosähkön hinta nostettiin 12 senttiin kilowattitunnilta. Biometaanin tuotanto oli pienessä laitosvaihtoehdossa kannattavaa, jos myytävän biometaanin hinta oli 1,1 €/kg. Suuressa laitosvaihtoehdossa se oli kannattavaa, kun hinta oli 0,85 €/kg. Lämpöenergian suhteen tila ei päässyt energiaomavaraisuuteen millään laitosvaihtoehdolla. Sähkön osalta suuri CHP:tä tuottava laitos tuotti kaiken tilan kuluttaman sähkön ja pieni CHP:tä tuottava laitos tuotti noin kolme neljäsosaa tilan vuosittaisesta sähkönkulutuksesta.
  • Aarnio, Sebastian (2022)
    Since the term blue carbon was first coined in 2009, the interest in the carbon stocks and annual carbon sequestration of mangrove forests, salt marshes and seagrass meadows has increased noticeably. However, in the past couple of years, the carbon capabilities of kelp forests have also started to garner more attention, leading to multiple published studies arguing for their inclusion as a blue carbon ecosystem. However, so far, few studies have actually compared the amount of carbon stored and sequestered by kelp forests to the three traditional blue carbon ecosystems. Thus, the aim of this thesis was to estimate and compare the amount of carbon currently stored and annually sequestered by the different blue carbon ecosystems. Furthermore, the effects and costs of blue carbon ecosystem degradation were also estimated. Based on the results of a thorough literature review regarding the global distribution and degradation rates of the ecosystems as well as the amount of carbon sequestered and stored per unit area, the total amount of carbon stored in blue carbon ecosystems is estimated to be between 5 and 25 Pg, with mangrove forests storing roughly half of that. Yet, whilst kelp forests are estimated to have a far larger global distribution than all of the other blue carbon ecosystems combined, they only store around 0.1–1.4 Pg of carbon, since all of the carbon is stored in their biomass, unlike the other blue carbon ecosystems, in which the vast majority of carbon is located in the soils. However, the total amount of carbon sequestered annually by all blue carbon ecosystems is estimated to be between 40 and 331 Tg, out of which 8–231 Tg is sequestered by kelp forests. Yet, due to the degradation of the ecosystems during 2022, a combined 30–294 Tg of the previously stored carbon is estimated to be released into the atmosphere, whilst the amount sequestered during the year is reduced by roughly 0.4–6 Tg. Out of the carbon released, the majority is from the carbon stocks of seagrass meadows, whilst the carbon sequestration of kelp forests is reduced the most. The total combined cost of the degradation equals €9–174 billion, when the costs of the previously stored carbon released is combined with the NPV of the reduced carbon sequestration. Out of this, the total cost for kelp forests is estimated at €1–59 billion. However, whilst the number of studies published on blue carbon has increased, the data available regarding the ecosystems is still limited. As such, there are considerable uncertainties regarding the values presented and the results of the thesis should thus be considered rough estimates. That being said, the results still underline the importance of blue carbon ecosystems as carbon sinks as well as the considerable costs caused by environmental degradation. Furthermore, the thesis provides further support for the notion that kelp forests should indeed be considered a blue carbon ecosystem.
  • Leinonen, Helmi (2023)
    Discussion around climate crisis and companies’ role in its mitigation has been accelerating especially in the past few years. Companies are in a crucial role if the targets set in the Paris Agreement are wished to be fulfilled. Companies have also noted the importance of the topic. Corporate environmental responsibility and sustainability themes have gotten a firm foothold in corporate world and companies can control them by utilizing different corporate governance mechanisms. This thesis aims to examine the importance of corporate governance and sustainability management in companies. Purpose is to study whether there is a link between the level of companies’ climate maturity and different corporate governance mechanisms that are used to manage companies’ sustainability. In addition, this thesis examines if there are differences in the results depending on size, industry, or country where companies are headquartered. Scope of this thesis is corporate environmental responsibility and climate sustainability in the context of greenhouse gas emissions. Companies are divided into two groups based on their climate maturity which is determined by whether they have set science-based emission reduction targets validated by the Science Based Targets initiative. Analysis is conducted with statistical analysis, logistic regression and is carried out with Stata. Data is originally from a corporate study and consists of 46 medium and large-sized Nordic companies from various industries. Sustainability criteria in management’s incentive plans and in companies’ investment decisions had a positive and significant link to companies’ climate maturity. Chief Sustainability Officer and board-level sustainability committee were insignificant in the model. Larger companies were more connected to climate maturity most likely because they have more resources to develop their sustainability and corporate environmental responsibility. In addition, larger companies are often obligated to disclose their sustainability performance and face pressure from the public to decrease their negative effects which can encourage them to set more advanced targets. It seems that the most effective measures are mechanisms with concrete criteria, compared to the more symbolic measures with no direct effect. Companies should focus on creating actions with impactful measures that create change in their organizations whereas policy makers should aim to create regulation directing companies towards these measures. Scientific research can help by providing knowledge of the most impactful corporate governance mechanisms. Sample size was relatively small, which prevents from making highly generalized conclusions. With a larger dataset, companies’ maturity could have been determined on a wider scale, different analysis methods could have been used and sustainability could have been considered in a more comprehensive perspective.
  • Tanhuanpää, Taru (2023)
    The accumulation of biological material, i.e., biofouling, on ship`s hulls is a significant issue both for the shipping companies and the environment. Biofouling on a ship`s hull increases friction, leading to increased fuel consumption and hence, an increase in the fuel costs and emissions from shipping. Furthermore, the EU maritime traffic will be included in the EU Emissions Trading System in 2024, meaning that shipping companies must pay for their carbon dioxide emissions. This creates an additional economic incentive for the companies to prevent biofouling. The main methods for preventing biofouling on a ship`s hull are different coatings and possible in-water cleaning of the coated surfaces. The coating types include biocidal coatings, fouling release coatings, and hard coatings. Despite the notable problems from biofouling, there is currently no international regulation concerning biofouling management of shipping companies. A holistic understanding of this complex issue is needed to develop more sustainable shipping in the future. In this thesis, I analyze this topic by further developing an existing Bayesian network model, which is a decision tool for examining the outcomes from different biofouling management strategies. My focus on the topic is the costs of shipping companies from biofouling and its management. The existing model concerns the costs of coating, in-water cleaning, and fuel consumption. In this thesis, I add emission allowance costs and uncertainty to the fuel prices in the model to study whether these additions would change the profitability of different biofouling management strategies. My hypothesis is that to minimize the costs of biofouling and its management, shipping companies should increase the in-water cleaning times when the emission allowance costs are included in the model. The study revealed that the most cost-effective coating type, for a general cargo ship and a tanker, is a fouling release coating. For a passenger ship, the cost-effectiveness depends on the age of the coating, but a biocidal coating is the most cost-effective option when the age of the coatings is two years. My additions to the existing model did not change the result concerning the cost-effectiveness of the coating types. The results also revealed that the future inclusion of maritime transport to the EU Emissions Trading System will increase the costs of shipping companies from biofouling. Despite this, my hypothesis got rejected since the inclusion of the emission allowance costs did not lead to increased in-water cleaning times. My changes in the fuel prices led to a decrease in the in-water cleaning times, for some ship types, compared to the original model. This is not due to the uncertainty itself but because the fuel price distributions, which I used, led to lower expected fuel costs than in the original model. The study highlights that fuel costs might be one of the most important factors in determining whether enhanced biofouling management will be profitable for shipping companies in the future.
  • Turunen, Anna Kaarina (2023)
    Lack of finance is a major constraint for the smallholder soybean farmers in northern Ghana. The area is affected by soil degradation, poverty, and food insecurity, while a majority of the people in the area get their livelihood from agriculture. As a possible solution for the three problems, a natural biofertilizer and biocontrol agent, rhizobium bacteria, can be introduced to the rhizospheres of the soybean. This is usually done by applying rhizobium bacteria to the seeds of a legume prior to planting. This rhizobial inoculation technology improves plant growth, nutrient availability and uptake, as well as yields, thereby increasing the income and food security of the smallholder farmers. A credit to be invested in rhizobium inoculation technology would provide smallholder farmers with the opportunity to improve soil fertility and increase farm productivity, improving their food security and enabling them to earn additional income. The private market for rhizobial inoculants is nascent, but many of the farmers report financial constraints. To create a functioning market and to realise the social and environmental benefits of soybean cultivation and rhizobium inoculation technology, it is important to understand the causes of credit constraints of smallholder farmers and how to reduce them. In this thesis, I study the prevalence and the determinants of credit constraints among smallholder soybean farmers by applying a logistic regression model to a sample of 133 smallholder farmers in northern Ghana. I first define credit constrained status of the farmers and conclude that the prevalence of observable credit constraints in the sample is 57.1%. I conclude that there are two broad categories of variables affecting a farmer’s status as credit constrained. The first of these is the type of guarantees that a farmer can offer to the lender. Such guarantees are represented by membership in a farmers' association (and hence access to possible joint guarantees), existing assets such as ownership of cows, and a farmer's experience in soybean production (reflecting knowledge of good investment decisions in the sector). The second category relates to the supply of credit and the factors affecting it. The factors affecting credit supply identified in this study are regional disparities and loans targeted to a certain group, such as women. By influencing the supply and conditions of credit, the financial constraints of smallholder farmers can be alleviated. Such policy interventions, combined with other leverage points such as social learning and access to information, contribute to the adoption of desirable farming practices. Because of the many benefits of rhizobial inoculation in soybean production, its adoption could be promoted by offering credit directed particularly for the adoption of this technology. This would benefit not only the farmers but have broader benefits in the form of climate change adaptation and mitigation
  • Kokkonen, Tuomas (2023)
    Gypsum treatment of fields has proven to be a promising method of agriculture water protection. The purpose of this study is to investigate the drivers and barriers of gypsum treatment adoption among innovator and early adopter farmers. Based on the literature review, the factors affecting adoption of gypsum treatment are divided to farm, farmer, practice, program and context characteristics. The quantitative data of this study was gathered as a part of the KIPSI project from farmers that have or had suitable arable fields for gypsum treatment in the Archipelago Sea catchment area in spring 2020. The research data is analyzed with statistical methods including exploratory factor analysis, one-way analysis of variance, Kruskal-Wallis test, Chi-square test and Mann-Whitney U test. The results show that what determines the applying gypsum treatment of fields are practice, program and context characteristics such as information about the long term effects of gypsum, peer references, gypsum treatment being cost-free to the farmer, practical elements of the program, gypsum treatment’s environmental benefits and improving environmental image of agriculture. Farmer’s attitudes towards gypsum treatment play a role as well. On the other hand, farm or farmer sociodemographic characteristics such as farmer age, education, fulltime farming, share of rented land or total field area of the farm do not affect to the adoption of gypsum treatment. Out of the farm characteristics, only cereal farming is emphasized among the farmers that applied or are likely to apply gypsum treatment in the future in comparison to the farmers that are unlikely to apply gypsum treatment in the future. Exploratory factor analysis revealed four motivation factors to apply gypsum treatment of fields: water protection, fertilization and gaining new experiences, land improvement and protection of local waters and cost-effectiveness and recommendation of acquaintances. Water protection motivated farmers have positive views and attitudes towards gypsum treatment and agriculture water protection. Strong fertilization and gaining new experiences motivation is associated with cereal farming and the strong land improvement and protection of local waters motivation with large total field area of farm and younger age. Exploratory factor analysis revealed five motivation factors to not apply gypsum treatment of fields: doubts about the method, need for peer experiences and information about the long-term effects of gypsum, practical reasons, urgency and a view that the state of the waters is not weak and unsuitability of fields. Farmers having strong doubts about the method motivation have cautious attitude towards gypsum. They have also large field area as like the strong practical reasons motivated, who are also often fulltime farmers. Strong need for peer experiences and information about the long-term effects of gypsum motivation is associated with cereal farming. As this study focused on gypsum treatment, further research could expand to studying the acceptance as well as drivers and barriers of applying other agricultural water protection measures, such as structural lime treatment of fields.
  • Isomäki, Riina (2023)
    Maatalouden rakennemuutos ja liiketoimintaympäristön muuttuminen edellyttävät nykypäivän maatiloilta uudenlaisia kyvykkyyksiä. Miksi toiset tilat selviävät muutoksessa paremmin kuin toiset tilat? Strategiatutkimus lähestyy kysymystä käyttäen selittäjänä dynaamisten kyvykkyyksien teoriaa. Kyvykkyyksien avulla selvitetään, miten maatilayrittäjä aistii muutoksen liiketoimintaympäristössään ja miten hän tarttuu havaittuun muutokseen miettien tilansa jatkuvaa uudistamista. Tutkimuksessa haastateltiin seitsemää yrittäjää, joiden päätuotantosuuntana oli emolehmät. Yrittäjät olivat päätoimisia yrittäjiä tai emolehmätuotanto oli eriytetty tilan muista toiminnoista, joten tuotannon kannattavuuden arvioiminen oli konkreettisempaa. Teemahaastatteluna toteutetut haastattelut tehtiin kyselylomakkeen pohjalta, joka oli muotoiltu Teecen (2007b) ajatusten perustalle dynaamisista kyvykkyyksistä. Miten tunnistetaan, tartutaan sekä otetaan muutos käytäntöön suomalaisilla emolehmätiloilla. Yrittäjän päätöksiin tutkimuksessa vaikuttivat tilan resurssit, strategia sekä yrittäjän oma arvomaailma tilan historiaan kytkettynä. Yrittäjät olivat kyllä avoimia uudelle, keräsivät tietoa toimintaympäristöstään sisä- ja ulkopuolelta mutta käytännön toteutuksen suhteen monella tilalla oli parannettavaa. Pitkän- ja lyhyen aikavälin suunnitelmia olisi hyvä tehdä myös paperille asti. Tavoitteena tutkielmassa ei ole tehdä yleistettäviä päätelmiä emolehmätuotannon johtamistavoista. Tulosten avulla voidaan havainnoida vain, miten pieni määrä emolehmätiloja tekee päätöksiä tuotantonsa suhteen. Tulevaisuuden tutkimuksissa tulisikin perehtyä laajemmin dynaamisten kyvykkyyksien vaikutuksiin yleensä maatilojen johtamisessa.
  • Seppänen, Anni (2023)
    Finland has set ambitious goals to reduce road transport emissions. One of these goals includes halving emissions from transport by 2030 compared to the 2005 levels. Another goal is the carbon-neutrality target of 2035, in which the transport sector plays an important role as well. Achieving these targets requires efficient instruments. A possible instrument which can be used to reduce transport emissions sufficiently is emission trading. The possibility of creating a national emission trading system for the transport sector to reach Finland’s targets regarding emissions is the focus of this thesis. Establishing an emission trading system would likely have effects on the fuel price. I present the theoretical background before modelling these effects. Understanding how the fuel market works and how emission trading would affect it is crucial before analysing the impacts by modelling. The role of the price elasticity of demand in determining the change in the fuel price is highlighted. The existing literature has studied the topic of emission trading for transport extensively and points out three important design elements: the inclusion of the transport sector, the allocation of permits, and the point of regulation. These elements are discussed using previous studies on the topic. Furthermore, many studies highlight the possible distributional effects an emission trading system could cause. Exploring the currently operational emission trading systems around the world gives real-life examples of the different design elements and how distributional effects could be corrected in practice. When modelling the effects of emission trading on the fuel price, the value for the price elasticity of demand can be estimated using meta-analysis. For the meta-analysis, I selected 28 previous studies. The weighted average for the short-term elasticity is found to be -0.1607. For the long-term elasticity, the value is found to be -0.448. Using Monte Carlo simulations and the values obtained from the meta-analysis, it is possible to calculate the average changes in the fuel price and in the emission permit price, and also illustrate the uncertainty arising from the fact that the actual price elasticity of demand is not known. For emission reductions of 0.6 megatonne, the total change in the fuel price by 2030 is calculated to be 0.34 euros per litre. This means that the emission permit price would be approximately 204 euros per tonne of CO2 in 2030. In addition, other possible instruments as well as other emission reduction target values are modelled in the analysis. Finally, I discuss the design elements in more detail. An upstream system with auctioning would be an efficient option for the design of an emission trading system. In addition, I discuss the interaction of emission trading with other instruments and the possible EU ETS for transport. Last, I present limitations and some topics for future research.
  • Leppälä, Antti (2023)
    Tieliikennesektorilla sekä rakennusten erillislämmityksellä on merkittävä rooli EU-alueen kasvihuonekaasupäästöistä. Edellä mainitut sektorit eivät ole yhdessä onnistuneet saavuttamaan EU:n laskevaa kokonaispäästö. Tämän vuoksi tieliikenteen polttoaineille sekä rakennusten erillislämmityksissä käytettäville polttoaineille järjestetään erillinen EU:n laajuinen päästöoikeuskauppajärjestelmä. Tutkielmassa tarkastellaan päästökauppajärjestelmän vaikutuksia talouden pitäjiin tutkimalla vaikutuksia polttoaineiden hintoihin. Myös järjestelmän yksityiskohtaisia asetuksien tarkoituksenmukaisuutta tarkastellaan lähemmin vertailemalla tutkimuksen analyysin tuloksia ja määrättyjä päästöoikeuden hinnoilla laskettuja vaikutuksia. Vaikutuksia tutkitaan useiden eri tavoin muodostettujen kysynnän hintajoustoskenaarioiden kautta. Analyysi ei ota huomioon rakennusten erillislämmitykseen käytettävien polttoaineiden sektoria huomioon, vaan sen odotetaan reagoivan päästökauppajärjestelmän toimeenpanemiseen yhtäläisesti tieliikennesektorin kanssa. Analyysin mukaan päästöoikeuskaupan implementointi tulee kasvattamaan polttoaineen hintaa keskimäärin 0,12 €/l. Olennaisimpana tekijänä lopputuloksessa on järjestelmään lisätty konfiguraatio, joka käytännössä rajoittaa päästöoikeuden hinnan 45 euroon. Tarkoituksenmukaisuus on kyseenalainen vertailtaessa lopputulosta skenaarioihin sekä 180 euron päästöoikeuden hintaan, sillä 45 euron dynaaminen hintakatto tekee vähennystavoitteen saavuttamisesta mahdollisesti haasteellista. Tutkimuksen analyysi tarjoaa selkeän estimaatin päästökauppajärjestelmän täytäntöönpanon vaikutuksista polttoaineen hintaan. Analyysi mahdollisesta päästöjen jakautumista päästökauppajärjestelmän sisällä tuottaisi oletettavasti täsmällisempiä estimaatteja polttoaineen hinnan vaikutuksiin. Lisäksi sähköautojen yleistyessä kuluttajamarkkinoilla polttoaineen kysynnän hintajouston yksityiskohtaisempi tarkastelu saattaisi olla olennaista.
  • Ingman, Mikael (2023)
    Syftet med avhandlingen är att med ekonometrisk analys undersöka vilka faktorer som påverkar prisbildningen på vete under åren 2000–2022 och om det är någon skillnad mellan de förklarande variablerna under stabilare tidsperioder jämfört med volatila tidsperioder. I undersökningen användes prisdata samlat ur Europeiska kommissionens - och världsbankens datamaterial, samt data på lagernivåer samlat ur USDAs rapporter och pristermin data ur CFTCs rapporter. All data som användes hade månatliga observationer mellan januari 2000 och december 2022. De förklarande variablerna valdes på basis av tidigare forskning och teori. Undersökningen gjordes genom att forska i variablernas korrelation, stationaritet och genom ekonometrisk tidsserieanalys. Ekonometrisk tidsserieanalys gjordes i fyra omgångar. En analys för hela tidsperioden mellan åren 2000–2022 med hjälp av dummyvariabler, samt tre analyser för åren 2007–2008, 2010–2013 och 2020–2022. Undersökningen visar att det är skillnad mellan variablerna under de tidsperioder som valdes att forskas i. Också modellernas förklaringskraft varierade i de olika ekonometriska tidsserieanalyserna. Under tidsperioden 2000-2022 visade sig alla förklarande variabler sig vara signifikanta (oljepris, naturgaspris, ureapris, valutakursen och veteslutlagren), förutom spekulanternas innehav av pristerminer. Dummyvariablerna som representerade de olika tidsperioderna visade sig också alla vara signifikanta. Det fanns icke-stationaritet i observationerna för de valda variablerna, men detta lyckades fångas upp genom att tillföra en tidsvariabel i modellen.
  • Yli-Liipola, Mauri (2022)
    Increased awareness in health issues and nutritional elements has derived consumers to pay premium prices for functional products and producers have developed differentiated products to match these heterogenous preferences. The assessment of the versatile food commodity markets has long intrigued the attention of researchers and it is well-established that the hedonic pricing method is a prominent approach in determining an attribute's cost and perceived value to customers. With the method of hedonic pricing, this study aims to determine how those values form the online prices of bread. Specifically, it examines the marginal prices of bread sold on e-commerce platforms in Finland and whether those change over time. Moreover, this study aims to analyze the extent to which complex data extraction methods add value to prior hedonic pricing methodologies. To test the null hypotheses that estimated marginal prices have no relationship to online prices of bread, and the marginal prices of bread attributes do not significantly change during the data collection period, a semi-logarithmic hedonic price function with HAC standard errors was specified. In the empirical part, the hedonic price function was estimated for the whole sample and each data day. Daily price quotes for the analysis were extracted from the largest Finnish grocery retailer's e-commerce platform via web scraping. The results showed that the estimated relationships between price and marginal prices were significant but that the effects on the price did not significantly change during the data collection period. The results suggest that Finnish consumers value taste over health and place a high value on stomach-friendly and domestic bread. These findings are a valuable source for better understanding regular bread purchasing decisions and producer product differentiation strategies. Although web scraping was the only alternative to obtain detailed, up-to-date product data in the Finnish context, daily scraping seemed unnecessary as bread prices remained stable. However, daily scraping combined with the hedonic pricing method yielded valuable information regarding the holiday season’s pricing strategies of Finnish retailers. On this basis, web scraping should be included in hedonic pricing applications on food products and the whole food commodity research field.
  • Arto, Tiina (2021)
    To combat climate change, emission reduction measures are needed in all sectors of the economy. Finland's effort sharing sector has a binding 39 percent emission reduction obligation for 2030. Achieving the obligation requires actions in every field of activity in the effort sharing sector. Emissions from decentralised heating systems in buildings are included in the effort sharing sector. In Finland these emissions originate mainly from oil heated buildings. Currently there are still around 130 000 oil heated detached houses in Finland whose carbon dioxide emissions could be reduced by utilising renewable energy. In this study oil heating is completely replaced with a ground source heat pump, a pellet heating system or an air-to-water heat pump. Partial replacement of oil heating was also studied, whereby an air-to-water heat pump is installed alongside the old oil heating or part of a fossil light fuel oil is replaced by bio-based fuel oil with the distribution obligation. The study was conducted from the perspective of environmental economics and the main purpose was to examine the cost-effectiveness of these emission reduction measures and the policy measures directed to the oil heated detached houses. The method used was a cost-effectiveness analysis based on a 15-year calculation period. Based on the results, the social costs of emission reduction measures varied from 35 EUR/tCO2 to 114 EUR/tCO2. From the societal point of view, the most cost-effective emission reduction measure proved to be an air-to-water heat pump alongside an existing oil heating system. Based on the results, the most expensive emission reduction measure for the society is the distribution obligation of bio-based fuel oil, which is why emissions from oil heating in detached houses should be reduced primarily by other measures. The tax and support levels used in the calculation were based on the 2020 levels. Based on the results, private emission reduction costs varied from -50 EUR/tCO2 to 169 EUR/tCO2, depending on the policy option and the discount rate. Based on the results, the tax level used in the calculations is insufficient for making the measures profitable for households which apply a higher discount rates than the society. The aid policy is therefore justified in order to promote the measures.
  • Kokkonen, Aino (2022)
    Yhteiskunta asettaa yhä enenevissä määrin paineita yrityksille, organisaatioille ja kuluttajille vähentää hiilidioksidipäästöjä ilman pakkokeinoja. Hiilidioksidipäästöjen vähentäminen nollaan ei ole kuitenkaan aina mahdollista ja kustannukset jo pienistäkin vähennyksistä saattavat olla huomattavat. Vaihtoehtona hiilidioksidipäästöjen vähentämiselle on hiilidioksidipäästöjen kompensoiminen. Päästökompensaation myötä yritykset, organisaatiot ja kuluttajat voivat ostaa kompensaatioyksikköjä, mikä tarkoittaa käytännössä sitä, että päästöjään kompensoiva taho maksaa päästöjen vähentämisestä jossain muualla, missä vähentäminen on edullisempaa ja helpompaa. Tämä pro gradu -tutkielma on toteutettu yhteistyössä Nokian Panimon kanssa. Tutkimuksessa lasketaan Nokian Panimon Be sharp -energiajuoman tuotannon hiilidioksidipäästöt, ja tarkoituksena on selvittää kyseisten hiilidioksidipäästöjen kompensaation hinta CO2eston päästöleikkurin avulla sekä tutkia kompensaatiota myös vaihtoehtoisten palveluntarjoajien kautta. Tavoitteena on löytää luotettavuuden ja tehokkuuden kannalta optimaalisin kompensaatiokeino. Tutkimus koostuu kahdesta osasta, kirjallisuuskatsauksesta ja case-tutkimuksesta. Kirjallisuuskatsauksessa keskitytään vapaaehtoisen päästökompensaation teoriaan, sen eri menetelmiin sekä niiden ominaisuuksiin. Osiossa käsitellään erityisesti päästökompensaatiomenetelmien luotettavuutta erilaisin mittarein. Tutkimusosiossa puolestaan käydään läpi Be sharp -energiajuoman hiilijalanjälkilaskennan lähtökohdat, laskenta ja tulokset. Lisäksi paneudutaan itse päästöjen kompensointiin ja siitä koituviin kustannuksiin. Tutkimuksen tuloksissa vastataan kysymyksiin mitkä ovat kompensoivan yrityksen kustannukset vapaaehtoisesta päästökompensaatiosta, mitä kompensaatio kustantaisi muiden palveluntarjoajien kautta ja millä perustein vapaaehtoista päästökompensaatiota tarjoava yritys kannattaisi valita. Tutkimuksen mukaan Be sharp -energiajuoman hiilidioksidipäästöjen kustannukset Euroopan päästöoikeuskaupan päästöoikeuden hinnasta riippuen, vuonna 2021 ovat 25,4–46,2 €/ 1000 l. Kustannukset eivät ole siis kovin merkittävät suhteessa tuotteen vähittäismyyntihintaan noin 3600 €/ 1000 l. Kompensaation kustannukset vaihtoehtoisten palveluntarjoajien kautta vaihtelevat välillä 4.7 €-35,7 €/ 1000 Hintaerot voivat olla merkittäviäkin, ja osassa kompensaatiokeinoista hinnan määritys on epäselvä. Tutkimuksessa todetaan, että hinnan sijaan tärkeämpää kompensaatioita tarjoavan yrityksen valinnassa ovat kriteerit, joita kompensaatiomarkkinalla pidetään yleisesti luotettavina mittareina. Tärkeimmät kriteerit ovat päästövähennysten lisäisyys, kaksoislaskennan välttäminen, mitattavuus, pysyvyys, ajoitus, hiilivuodon välttäminen, dokumentaatio ja valvonta. Näiden kriteerien avulla päästöjään kompensoiva taho voi löytää parhaan mahdollisen kompensaatiokeinon markkinoilta. Tämä vaatii kuitenkin pitkällistä perehtymistä aiheeseen, ja palvelujen luotettavuus saattaa silti jäädä epäselväksi. Markkinaa tulisikin selkeyttää ja mahdollisesti jopa rajoittaa väärinkäsitysten ja disinformaation välttämiseksi.
  • Luque Lindelöf, Lucas (2024)
    Tiivistelmä – Referat – Abstract The dairy sector in Finland and the EU has experienced several important shocks during the past decade, causing increased instability and dramatic price movements. It has put pressure on different market participants as well as on policy makers while simultaneously driving a growing interest for price transmission studies. However, gaps in the research field persists and this study addresses this void by focusing on the characteristic of Finnish raw milk prices and their relation to the prices of key trading partners, including Sweden, Denmark, Estonia, Germany and France. Considering descriptive statistics and graphical representations, the assumption that Finnish milk prices exhibit relative independence seems plausible. This seemingly independent behavior challenges theoretical foundations related to market equilibrium while prompting questions about market efficiency Employing econometric time series analysis, this study covers the 2013-2023 timeframe and pursues two main objectives: identifying a potential long-run cointegration relationship and studying short-run impacts of other countries' milk prices on Finnish prices. The Engle-Granger two-step framework is used for the cointegration analysis, confirming the hypothesis that Finnish milk prices operate autonomously, lacking a long-run equilibrium with other EU countries. Although some previous papers suggests that milk prices in the EU generally seem interconnected, Finland has not been the focus of such studies. The finding of this paper aligns with literature suggesting weaker cointegration in dairy markets compared to other agricultural sectors in the EU. The paper discusses potential explanations, considering structural characteristics of the dairy sector, dairy trade features, and broader market inefficiencies influencing price transmission. However, additional research is warranted to comprehend practical implications, particularly concerning market efficiency and the competitive status of participants in the domestic dairy sector. Short-run influences are modeled by applying a dynamic ordinary least squares regression with lagged price variables. The outcomes reveal rather unexpected results, with main trading partners such as Sweden, Denmark, and Germany, exerting no significant influence on Finnish prices. In contrast, France and Estonia seem to exhibit considerable influence on Finnish milk prices. Caution is advised in interpreting the short-run impacts, addressing the possible shortcomings of such regression for example regarding potential arbitrariness in the indications of the model. Ultimately, the results of this study point at some general implications, suggesting that price transmission is not solely a consequence of physical trade, and that the intricate characteristics of the dairy sector clearly challenge the direct application of economic theories like the law of one price to agricultural commodities. The need for a nuanced understanding of price dynamics in the dairy market is underscored as an important element of policy and market efficiency considerations.
  • Juhanko, Kaisa (2022)
    Ilmastonmuutos aiheuttaa uudenlaisia riskejä yhteiskunnan toiminnoille sekä toimialoille, ja fyysisten ilmastoriskien lisäksi se heijastaa suuren kokonaisriskin taloudelle ja rahoitusjärjestelmälle. Tämän takia myös finanssialan toimijoiden kannattaa ennakoida tulevia muutoksia ja varautua ilmastoriskeihin. Ilmastoriskien hallinnan tueksi on kehitetty erilaisia ilmastopalveluita, jotka tukevat erityisesti ilmastonmuutokseen sopeutumista. Ilmastopalveluiden hyödyntäminen finanssialalla on kuitenkin vasta alkutekijöissään, sillä niiden potentiaaliset hyödyt sekä yhteiskunnalle että finanssialan toimijoille ovat vielä huonosti tunnettuja. Tässä pro gradu -tutkielmassa toteutettiin finanssialan toimijoille kohdennettu kysely, jonka tarkoituksena oli selvittää finanssialan toimijoiden suhtautumista suoriin ja välillisiin ilmastoriskeihin sekä organisaation ilmastopalveluiden käyttöä, tarvetta ja yhtiön yleistä kiinnostusta ilmastopalveluihin. Tuloksia tarkasteltiin erityisesti vakuutus- ja sijoitussektorien näkökulmista. Lisäksi esitämme kustannus-hyötyarviointimallin, jonka avulla ilmastopalveluiden potentiaalisia hyötyjä eli lisäarvoa käyttäjälle voidaan havainnollistaa. Teoreettisen mallin avulla voidaan tarkastella, milloin ilmastopalvelut tarjoavat lisäarvoa. Tulosten mukaan finanssialan toimijat ovat kiinnostuneita sekä suorista että välillisistä ilmastoriskeistä ja pyrkivät integroimaan niitä organisaation riskienhallintaan. Erilaiset ilmastoriskit kuitenkin koskettavat finanssialan toimijoita hieman eri tavoin. Vakuutussektorin katsottiin olevan erityisesti kiinnostunut ilmastonmuutoksen seurauksena aiheutuvista fyysisistä riskeistä sekä tulevan raportoinnin ja sääntelyn vaatimuksista ja vaikutuksista vakuutusalalle. Ilmastopalveluiden kannalta erityisesti vahinkovakuutus kaipasi parempia ilmastopalveluita ja -tietoa. Sijoitus- ja varainhoitosektorin näkökulmasta oleellinen uhka näytti olevan kiristyvän sääntelyn vaikutus varallisuuden arvoon esimerkiksi sijoituskohteiden tuottavuusodotusten kautta. Sijoitussektoria edustaneet organisaatiot seurasivatkin ilmastoriskejä sijoitusten ilmastopolitiikan, sijoituspäätöksien, sijoitussuunnitelmien sekä riski- ja vakavaraisuusarviointien kannalta. Kustannus- hyötyarviointimallin pohjalta voitiin todeta, että ilmastopalveluiden potentiaalinen lisäarvo käyttäjälle syntyy ilmastoriskien sopeutumiskustannusten tai oikein mitoitetun ennakoinnin eli suojauksen säästöistä. Ilmastopalvelut siis laskevat ilmastoriskien hallinnan kustannuksia optimaalisten toimien avulla pienemmän epävarmuuden takia. Mitä suurempi sopeutumiskustannus tai epävarmuus riittävän suojauksen tasosta toimialalla on, sitä suurempi niiden tarjoama lisäarvo on.